A Te Aroha sculptor has taken on board the “trash to treasure” philosophy in a highly creative way.

For the past 15 years, Adrian Worsley has turned recycled material – a lot from farms – into unique works of art.

Prominent examples include Matamata’s signature racehorse, one of Morrinsville’s “Herd of Cows”, street art in Te Aroha, and pieces at Paeroa College and Matamata Primary School.

Adrian’s latest work is a larger-than-life cow for a Waikato farmer.

The 825kg Friesian, heading from his Rewi St gallery to its future home this month, is 2.5m high and 3.5m from nose to tail.

Labour of love

Like all of Adrian’s unique creations, the cow has been a labour of love.

Eighteen months ago, he received a “wish list” from the farmer client for Friesian cow with a friendly face and good udder.

Adrian Worsley with his latest cow creation. Photos / Steve Edwards

Adrian’s initial research involved photographs from the farm and online.

All the required materials were on hand, in his yard or via a scrap dealer in Hamilton.

The “big bits” included a bathtub, metal table bases and old plough discs.

White parts of the Friesian’s coat were created from new sheets of stainless-steel plate.

Adrian says an A4 sketch of the cow became a full-size picture, then a wire frame.

The latter was removed as he bent, twisted and shaped the assorted pieces of metal, welded together from the hooves up. “I polish and grind it as I go,” he says.

When finished, Adrian sprinkled the sculpture with water for five days until the non-stainless parts began to rust, creating the required black and white colouration.

This is further highlighted by masking the white sections and adding black dye to the balance.

Final act

The final act saw the piece lacquered by a Te Aroha contractor.

Adrian says the sculpture is completely hollow, with its shell 6mm thick.

As with the Matamata racehorse, he has erred on the side of greater size rather than more normal dimensions for the cow.

“The client didn’t specify dimensions, but I always like to go big if possible,” says Adrian. “They just look more eye-catching.”

Because of the time and effort involved, he does become attached to such large-scale projects. “It is hard to let go,” he admits.

A big music fan, Adrian named the cow “Sharona” after a song My Sharona by 1980s band The Knack.

He is in a “good space” in the gallery when listening to his favourite industrial rock performers such as Marilyn Manson, Ministry and Nine Inch Nails.

The 56-year-old grew up in Te Aroha and began “playing around with bits of pipe, timber, nuts and bolts” in his father’s basement at a young age.

This extended to making trolleys and motorbikes. “I always just loved making stuff,” says Adrian.

Rather surprisingly, he didn’t take metalwork or woodwork at college, but did attain an A-plus in art.

He left secondary school at 15 and worked on a dairy farm near Te Aroha. At 18 he joined a trailer builder in the town, becoming a fitter/welder.

Adrian then had a stint with a specialist stainless steel company in Te Aroha, and along the way taught himself woodwork and metalwork, including furniture-making and kitchen fitouts. This saw him go out on his own as a cabinetmaker.

His first job was a rustic fitout of Ironique Cafe in Te Aroha.

“There was nothing like that around,” says Adrian. “The business went ballistic.”

He operated workshops in Te Aroha and Queenstown, but “pulled back” to concentrate on his signature sculptures.

First piece

A motorcycle for an exhibition in Hamilton was his first piece. “There wasn’t a single motorbike part in it,” says Adrian. “It was all bits off farms … fence standards, milking machines and shovels.”

The inaugural piece sits among a weird and wonderful collection of metal objects and artwork in his gallery.

Picture a slightly tidier version of Steptoe & Son’s yard from the old classic British TV comedy series.

Adrian says he loves including items in his sculptures which people can instantly recognise, from hot water cylinders to frying pans and golf clubs.

Well-categorised

Despite the deliberately dishevelled appearance, material stored for future projects is well-categorised in Adrian’s workshop.

“I know where to lay my hands on something when it is needed.”

The need arises when he is commissioned by a client to produce a piece.

Adrian says this mostly comes from word-of-mouth. He also hosts group tours of his gallery by arrangement.

By the end of the year Adrian will have completed a bike-stand, including a large bull’s head, as a memorial to a Te Aroha pedigree stud farmer.

This will be included in his already impressive collection of pieces along Te Aroha’s main street.

Adrian has also put together a steampunk-themed sculpture – an octopus in the shape of a penny farthing bicycle – for the Hauraki Rail Trail in Thames.